The Gators finally became a consistent national player in the 1990s under the direction of new head coach and offensive guru, Steve Spurrier. Spurrier had set records and won a conference title at Duke by wringing every ounce of performance out of an under-talented squad. At Florida, Spurrier had a great deal more raw talent to work with. Even on his early teams, Galen Hall's recruiting set Spurrier up for some early success. Then came Spurrier's monster class of 1993, and since then, the SEC has not been the same. True, I'd be happy with the 1996 team all over again, but if I could pick and choose from 10 years of Florida Gators, I could do a little better than that tremendous unit. The result of my draft would look something like this:

All-90s Offense

Quarterbacks

First Team: Danny Wuerffel.

His coach called him the greatest quarterback to ever play college football. Arguable, to be sure, but when his backup, Eric Kresser, got to start a game, Kresser threw for 458 yards. That guy had to sit on the bench. Wuerffel set all kinds of SEC records, and a few NCAA marks as well, such as most TD passes by a freshman and career pass efficiency. Efficient is what he was, leading the two highest scoring Florida teams ever (1995 and 1996). He won the Heisman, the National Championship, and a handful of other awards. He could take punishment as well as any pocket passer, understood offense almost as well as his coach, and could throw almost every pass.

Second Team: Shane Matthews.

A fifth stringer when Spurrier arrived in 1990, Matthews quickly learned the offense and proved to be a tremendous team leader. He laid waste a variety of UF and SEC records and took the program to new heights in a probation-free era, including the school's first official SEC title.

Honorable Mentions: Eric Kresser; Terry Dean; Doug Johnson.

Running Backs

First Team: Erricht Rhett; Fred Taylor.

Rhett had an immediate impact as a freshman and became UF's career leader in rushing yards. He excelled on two plays: the E Rhett play, a quick cutback counter, and the dump off pass over the middle. Taylor also had an impact early, but came into his own his senior year topping off his career with huge games against FSU and Penn State.

Second Team: Elijah Williams; Terry Jackson.

Honorable Mention: Dexter McNabb; Willie McClendon.

Wide Receivers

First Team: Ike Hilliard; Jaquez Green.

Both make appearance on my NCAA all-decade teams, yet both are just a shade above the other guys on the all-Florida team. Hilliard was tough over the middle and could make jaw-dropping moves, whereas Green had tremendous hands and strength for a little guy and had a second gear that blew people away.

Second Team: Chris Doering; Willie Jackson.

Honorable Mentions: Reidel Anthony; Jack Jackson; Travis McGriff; Aubrey Hill; Tre Everett; Harrison Houston; Travis Taylor.

Tight End

First Team: Kirk Kirkpatrick

Easily Florida's best tight end of the 90s, the only one to lead the team in receptions. Kirkpatrick was Mr. Clutch, coming up with all the big first down catches.

Second Team: Tremayne Allen.

Honorable Mention: Erron Kinney.

Offensive Line

First Team: Jeff Mitchell; Donnie Young; Mo Collins; Cheston Blackshear; Jason Odom.

Don't be fooled by those that say Florida's 1999 line was its best. The best lines featured Mitchell, Young, and Odom. The three were smart, disciplined, and true gamers. Collins was heralded, but mistake prone. Blackshear grew into a solid player.

Second Team: Ryan Kalich; Kenyatta Walker; Reggie Green; Zach Piller; Cooper Carlisle.

Place Kicker

First Team: Arden Czezewski.

Back in the days when Florida needed field goals, Arden nearly always delivered. Although Spurrier has always liked the 30-40 yard line zone as four down territory, Czezewski routinely made 40 yarders.

Second Team: Judd Davis

Honorable Mention: Jeff Chandler; Bart Edmiston.

All-Decade Defense

Defensive Line

First Team: Kevin Carter; Darren Mickell; Tony McCoy; Brad Culpepper.

What a well-balanced line this would be. In the center is Culpepper, a team leader and defensive play caller as the anchor. Next to him, the firey Tony McCoy, who delighted fans by following up a big tackle for a loss with a Gator chomp gesture for the crowd. And for the bookends, ferocious Darren Mickell and All-American Kevin Carter.

Second Team: Alex Brown; Mark Campbell; Ellis Johnson; Willie Gaines.

Honorable Mentions: Ed Chester; Henry McMillan; Johnie Church; Reggie McGrew; Gerard Warren; Tim Beauchamp.

Linebackers

First Team: Jevon Kearse; Ed Robinson; Johny Rutledge

Rutledge and Robinson are the tacklers in this group, whereas Kearse is the wreaker of havoc. Kearse grabbed interceptions, sacked quarterbacks, and forced fumbles all over the field.

Second Team: Mike Peterson; Huey Richardson; Ben Hanks.

Honorable Mention: Godfrey Myles; Carlton Miles; James Bates; Dexter Daniels.

Defensive Backs

First Team: Fred Weary; Larry Kennedy; Will White; Lawrence Wright.

Weary was the best cover guy at Florida in the decade, and made several All-America squads. Kennedy and White were the early-90s interception leaders for Florida. Lawrence Wright was a Thorpe Award winner who delivered tremendous hits and coined the mantra, "If you ain't a Gator, you must be Gator Bait!"

Second Team: Teako Brown; Tony George; Eli Williams; Anthone Lott.

Honorable Mentions: Lawrence Hatch; Bennie Alexander; Terrence Barber.

Punter

First Team: Shane Edge.

Edge was a terrific punter and a tough guy. I'll never forget the time he sent an FSU defensive lineman to the turf with a post-punt stiff-arm, or the time he took a bad snap for a long first down run in an SEC championship game.

Second Team: David Wasielewski.